Trump's Gaza plan stalls after a year

In September two thousand twenty-five, President Donald Trump unveiled a peace plan for Gaza. A year later, Hamas has not disarmed, Israel controls over sixty percent of the strip, and reconstruction has barely begun.

Netanyahu hardens stance before October election

As Israel's October election approaches, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected a U.S.-backed disarmament deal. The twenty-five-country Board of Peace has stopped pressuring him to comply because of the upcoming vote.

Most Israelis believe Palestinians reject peace

A Tel Aviv University poll found seventy-two percent of Jewish Israelis believe Palestinians are moderately or very opposed to peace negotiations. Over eighty percent believe Palestinians think no peace with Israel is achievable.

But Palestinian surveys tell a different story

Arab Barometer, a survey project conducted for two decades, shows a majority of Palestinians regard diplomatic negotiations as the best way to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Their October two thousand twenty-five survey contradicts Israeli perceptions.

Two-state solution gains support in both territories

Support for a two-state solution rose to fifty-six percent in the West Bank, up seven points from two thousand twenty-three. In Gaza, support rose from fifty-four percent to sixty-four percent over the same period.

Young Palestinians shift toward compromise

In two thousand twenty-three, Palestinians aged eighteen to twenty-nine were nine points less likely to favor a two-state solution than those thirty or older.By fall two thousand twenty-five, they were equally likely to support it.

Gazans show pragmatism on Arab normalization

Only eleven percent of Palestinians overall support Arab countries normalizing ties with Israel. But when asked if they would support normalization linked to Palestinian statehood, half of Gazans and more than a quarter of West…

Gaza's humanitarian crisis remains severe

Eighty-five percent of Gazans were displaced at least once since early October two thousand twenty-three. Sixty-one percent lost household employment. Under half said they ate every day in the past week.

Only nine percent of Gazans have electricity

Nine percent of Gazans had access to electricity and six percent to fuel or cooking gas. The UN reported Gaza still had a near-total absence of reliable electricity in early September.

West Bank security deteriorates rapidly

Only fifty-eight percent of West Bank Palestinians described their neighborhood as safe, a sixteen-point decline from October two thousand twenty-three. Two-thirds rated the Palestinian Authority's security provision as bad or very bad.

Most Gazans want to stay and rebuild

Forty-one percent of Gazans said they would leave if they could, similar to rates in Jordan at forty-four percent and Tunisia at forty-one percent. Most Gazans want to remain and rebuild their homeland.

Palestinians reject both Hamas and Fatah

In the West Bank, twenty-four percent felt closest to Hamas and eighteen percent to Fatah. Fifty-one percent indicated no party, don't know, or refused to respond. Just twenty-three percent had confidence in the Palestinian Authority.

Hamas support unchanged despite October seventh

Only a third of Gazans expressed confidence in the Hamas-led government in October two thousand twenty-five, unchanged from two thousand twenty-three. Seventy-two percent had criticized substantial corruption in government institutions.

Marwan Barghouti emerges as preferred leader

Nearly forty percent of Palestinians prefer Marwan Barghouti, a first intifada leader imprisoned in Israel since two thousand two and convicted of murder in two thousand four, as their presidential candidate.

Palestinians want democracy but crave results

Seventy-seven percent of West Bank Palestinians agreed democracy is the best system of governance. But support for a strong leader who bends the rules rose ten points to fifty-one percent between two thousand twenty-three and…

Palestinian statehood must be credible and near-term

Palestinians will not accept any result that simply ends fighting and keeps their future in limbo. A credible route to independent statehood must be part of any near-term solution, not a distant reward.

The question is whether Israel has a partner

Nearly seventy percent of Jewish Israelis refuse to contemplate Palestinian statehood under any circumstances. The question is not whether Palestinians have a partner for peace, but whether Israel does.

“The question at hand is not whether Israel has a partner for peace. It is whether the Palestinians have one.”

Israel's October election may shift the equation

Israelis have a chance to choose a government more committed to negotiation. The results of Israel's election on October twenty-seventh may go some distance toward answering whether peace is possible.